Cardiovascular changes in renal failure.

In patients with renal failure cardiovascular complications are an important clinical problem and cardiac death is the main cause of death in these patients. It is well documented that cardiac risk is increased by a factor of 20 in uremic patients compared with age- and sex-matched segments of the general population. This finding in patients with renal failure can be at least partially explained by the well-described structural and metabolic abnormalities of the myocardium. The present article focuses on the structural changes in the heart and the vasculature and their potential repercussions for cardiovascular function, in particular their contribution to the high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with renal failure. Copyright 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel